Magnesium
Mg, a mineral
A mineral found in foods such as spinach, nuts and wholemeal bread, sold in many forms, and also given by drip in hospital. This page covers only studies in people that measured thinking, memory, mood, stress, sleep, energy, tiredness or quality of life, where magnesium is studied mostly for sleep, mood and anxiety, often in people having surgery or living with a health condition. Here is every one we could find, sorted from each study's summary.
- Found in: spinach, nuts and wholemeal bread
- By mouth, most often 200 to 500 mg a day
- Usually weeks by mouth, or one drip in hospital
From every paper to the studies that matter
Our search looked only at magnesium papers on thinking, mood, sleep, energy and quality of life, not at all magnesium research. Of those, a smaller share gives magnesium to people, and a smaller share again gives it on its own, which is what this page is about.
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7,369 papers on magnesium and thinking, mood, sleep or energy.Every record in PubMed, all years
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479 are about people.The rest: 2,347 lab and animal studies, 1,032 reviews, 3,511 on chemistry, farming and more
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111 give magnesium on its own.71 more give it with vitamin B6, zinc or other nutrients in a blend
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70 are randomised against a placebo.Randomised controlled trials In a randomised controlled trial, people are put into groups by chance, one taking the treatment and one a placebo or other comparison. Chance spreads differences such as age and health evenly, so a difference between the groups is more likely to be down to the treatment., the strongest kind of study
Bar lengths use a square-root scale so the small numbers stay visible.
How much research there is
- 111 studies giving magnesium to people, on thinking, mood, sleep and energy
- 70 of them randomised against a placebo A placebo-controlled trial compares a real treatment with a dummy that looks the same, the placebo. People often feel better when they expect to, so comparing against a placebo shows how much of the change comes from the treatment itself.
- 10,584 people taking part, where studies say
- 138 systematic reviews A systematic review searches for every study on a question in a set, written-down way, judges the quality of each and sums up what they show together. Many include a meta-analysis. The Atlas lists these as pooled reviews. pooling the trials
Studies in people, by year published
Magnesium on its own.
What the studies looked at
Each study can measure several things. Choose a topic to see its studies in the list below.
Studies in people with a diagnosed condition are counted here and listed with their population. We describe what they measured, not what they might treat. Most studies also report safety; see below.
What was tested, and how much
Most doses here are the elemental magnesium a day by mouth, but some study summaries give only the weight of the salt, such as magnesium oxide or citrate, which is several times heavier than the magnesium it carries. Hospital studies of magnesium sulfate by drip, around surgery, in intensive care or in pregnancy, often give a total infusion dose of several grams over hours, so those dots sit far higher and don't compare with a daily tablet. Studies by mouth usually ran for weeks.
Daily amount, one dot per study
Studies per extract
Named extracts are the maker's brand. "Not named" means the study didn't say.
All studies in people
Filter the list, then open a study on PubMed. Each row comes from the study's published summary, and many follow people having surgery or living with a health condition.
| Study | Who took part | People | Extract and daily dose | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Khalid 2026RCT, placebo | Adults with diabetes and insomnia | 320 | Not named | – |
| Khalid 2026RCT, placebo | Adults with diabetes and insomnia | 320 | Not named | 9 weeks |
| Wang 2026RCT, active or other control | Adults having total knee arthroplasty | 150 | Magnesium sulfate | – |
| Yu 2026Non-randomised controlled | Postpartum women with hypertension | 140 | Magnesium sulfate | – |
| Wang 2026RCT, placebo | Adults having endoscopic sinus surgery | 137 | Magnesium sulfate | – |
| Zhou 2026RCT, placebo | Adults having laparoscopic cholecystectomy | 128 | Magnesium sulfate | – |
| Kuusipalo 2026RCT, placebo | Adults aged 50-85 with leg cramps | 121 | Magnesium hydrochloride | 4 weeks |
| Dhouibi 2026RCT, active or other control | Adults with myofascial pain syndrome | 45 | Not named | 26 weeks |
| Pickering 2026RCT, active or other control | Postmenopausal women with osteoporosis on zoledronate | 44 | Not named, 200 mg | 13 weeks |
| Siddique 2026Non-randomised controlled | Adults with depression on antidepressants | 44 | Magnesium glycinate, 112 mg | 4 weeks |
| Walyddaini 2026RCT, active or other control | Adults with depression taking fluoxetine | 40 | Not named, 250 mg | 6 weeks |
| Noor 2026RCT, active or other control | Adults with depression taking fluoxetine | 40 | Not named, 350 mg | 6 weeks |
| Pariona-Vargas 2025RCT, placebo | Adults with acute cerebral ischemia | 1,235 | Magnesium sulfate | – |
| Schuster 2025RCT, placebo | Adults with poor sleep | 155 | Magnesium bisglycinate, 250 mg | 4 weeks |
| Lopresti 2025RCT, placebo | Adults aged 18-45 with dissatisfied sleep | 100 | Magnesium L-threonate (Magtein), 2,000 mg | 6 weeks |
| Gracia 2025RCT, placebo | Adults having neurosurgery | 50 | Magnesium sulfate, 24,000 mg | – |
| Kang 2025RCT, placebo | Adults with hypertension, diabetes or hyperlipidaemia | 30 | Magnesium-enriched deep ocean water, 80 mg | 4 weeks |
| Wei 2025Other | Elite triathletes | 13 | Magnesium oxide | – |
| Khalid 2024RCT, placebo | Adults with diabetes and insomnia | 320 | Not named | 9 weeks |
| Abdel Rady 2024RCT, placebo | Adults having spine fusion surgery | 120 | Magnesium sulfate | – |
| Fathy 2024RCT, active or other control | Adults having lumbar fixation surgery | 80 | Magnesium sulfate | – |
| Hausenblas 2024RCT, placebo | Adults aged 35-55 with sleep problems | 80 | Magnesium L-threonate, 1,000 mg | 3 weeks |
| Rostami 2024RCT, placebo | Hospitalised adults with COVID-19 | 64 | Not named, 300 mg | – |
| Rodríguez-Morán 2024RCT, active or other control | Adults with long-COVID depression and low magnesium | 60 | Magnesium chloride, 1,300 mg | 17 weeks |
| Gorantla 2024Single-arm or open-label | Adults with restless legs syndrome | 12 | Magnesium citrate, 200 mg | 8 weeks |
| Ni 2023RCT, placebo | Women after breast cancer surgery | 109 | Magnesium L-threonate | 12 weeks |
| Gholizadeh-Moghaddam 2023RCT, placebo | Women with polycystic ovary syndrome | 64 | Magnesium oxide, 250 mg | 10 weeks |
| Abiri 2022RCT, placebo | Obese women with depressive symptoms | 108 | Not named, 250 mg | 8 weeks |
| Jadidi 2022RCT, placebo | Adults with restless legs syndrome | 75 | Magnesium oxide, 250 mg | 9 weeks |
| Jaripur 2022RCT, placebo | Women with polycystic ovary syndrome | 64 | Not named | 10 weeks |
| Saba 2022Non-randomised controlled | Patients after open-heart surgery | 60 | Magnesium oxide, 500 mg | 1 weeks |
| Nazarinasab 2022RCT, placebo | Adults with depression taking SSRIs | 60 | Not named | 6 weeks |
| Macian 2022RCT, placebo | Adults with fibromyalgia | – | Magnesium chloride (Chronomag), 100 mg | 4 weeks |
| Lu 2021RCT, placebo | Adults having laparoscopic cholecystectomy | 114 | Magnesium sulphate | – |
| Skalski 2021Non-randomised controlled | Hospitalised patients with major depression | 91 | Magnesium ions | 8 weeks |
| Alizadeh 2021RCT, placebo | Women with polycystic ovary syndrome | 84 | Not named | 8 weeks |
| Kim 2021RCT, placebo | Patients having robotic prostatectomy | 52 | Magnesium sulfate | – |
| Schutten 2021RCT, placebo | Overweight middle-aged adults | 49 | Not named, 350 mg | 24 weeks |
| Afsharfar 2021RCT, placebo | Adults with depression | 46 | Magnesium oxide, 500 mg | 8 weeks |
| Surman 2021Single-arm or open-label | Adults with ADHD | 15 | Magnesium L-threonate (LTAMS; MMFS302/MMFS202) | 12 weeks |
| Miller 2021Observational | Postpartum women with hypertensive disorder | – | Magnesium sulfate | 6 weeks |
| Barna 2021RCT, placebo | Adults with nocturnal leg cramps | – | Magnesium oxide monohydrate, 226 mg | 9 weeks |
| Zhu 2020RCT, placebo | Adults in colorectal cancer prevention trial | 250 | Not named | – |
| Hassan 2020RCT, active or other control | Adults having laparoscopic cholecystectomy | 80 | Magnesium sulphate | – |
| Pickering 2020Crossover, placebo | Adults with refractory neuropathic pain | 20 | Magnesium sulfate, 3,000 mg | – |
| Kayalha 2019RCT, placebo | Adults having lower limb fracture surgery | 60 | Magnesium sulfate | – |
| Huenges Wajer 2018RCT, placebo | Patients after aneurysmal subarachnoid haemorrhage | 209 | Magnesium sulfate, 1,555 mg | – |
| Ryszewska-Pokraśniewicz 2018RCT, placebo | Adults with recurrent depressive disorder on fluoxetine | 37 | Magnesium aspartate, 120 mg | 8 weeks |
| Cohen-Hagai 2018RCT, placebo | Outpatients with compensated liver cirrhosis | – | Magnesium oxide | – |
| Tarleton 2017RCT, active or other control | Adults with mild-to-moderate depression | 126 | Magnesium chloride, 248 mg | 6 weeks |
| Fard 2017RCT, placebo | Postpartum women | 99 | Magnesium sulfate, 320 mg | 8 weeks |
| Roguin Maor 2017RCT, placebo | Adults with nocturnal leg cramps | 94 | Magnesium oxide | 4 weeks |
| Rajizadeh 2017RCT, placebo | Depressed adults with low magnesium | 60 | Magnesium oxide, 500 mg | 8 weeks |
| Kovacevic 2017Single-arm or open-label | Children with migraine | 34 | Not named | 26 weeks |
| Mehdi 2017Crossover, placebo | Adults with treatment-resistant depression | 12 | Magnesium sulfate, 4,000 mg | 1 weeks |
| Wienecke 2016RCT, active or other control | Adults doing strength-endurance training | 100 | Not named, 400 mg | 13 weeks |
| Liu 2016RCT, placebo | Older adults with cognitive impairment | 44 | MMFS-01 (magnesium L-threonate) | 12 weeks |
| Dmitrašinović 2016RCT, active or other control | Amateur rugby players | 23 | Not named, 500 mg | 4 weeks |
| Engen 2015Single-arm or open-label | Women with fibromyalgia | 40 | Magnesium chloride (transdermal)On the skin | 4 weeks |
| Doyle 2014RCT, placebo | Children after antenatal magnesium sulfate exposure | 1,062 | Magnesium sulfate | – |
| Jabbour 2014RCT, placebo | Adolescents having scoliosis surgery | 50 | Magnesium | 0 weeks |
| Chollat 2014RCT, placebo | School-age children exposed before preterm birth | – | Magnesium sulfate | – |
| Mathew 2013RCT, placebo | Adults having cardiac surgery | 389 | Magnesium | – |
| Bagis 2013Non-randomised controlled | Premenopausal women with fibromyalgia | 60 | Magnesium citrate, 300 mg | 8 weeks |
| Amoozgar 2012Single-arm or open-label | Children with mitral valve prolapse and low magnesium | 230 | Magnesium chloride | 5 weeks |
| Andersen 2012RCT, placebo | Adults after open colonic resection | 49 | Magnesium oxide, 2,000 mg | – |
| Abbasi 2012RCT, placebo | Elderly adults with primary insomnia | 46 | Not named, 500 mg | 8 weeks |
| Park 2011Single-arm or open-label | Breast cancer patients with hot flashes | 29 | Magnesium oxide, 400 mg | 4 weeks |
| Saadawy 2010RCT, placebo | Adults having laparoscopic cholecystectomy | 120 | Magnesium sulfate | 0 weeks |
| Nielsen 2010RCT, placebo | Adults over 51 with poor sleep quality | 100 | Magnesium citrate, 320 mg | 7 weeks |
| Jaoua 2010RCT, placebo | Adults having major digestive surgery | 42 | Magnesium sulfate | 0 weeks |
| Jee 2009RCT, placebo | Adults having laparoscopic cholecystectomy | 32 | Magnesium sulfate | – |
| Marret 2008RCT, placebo | Women at risk of very preterm birth and infants | 688 | Magnesium sulfate, 4,000 mg | – |
| Barragán-Rodríguez 2008RCT, active or other control | Elderly type 2 diabetics with depression | 23 | Magnesium chloride, 450 mg | 12 weeks |
| Cinar 2008Non-randomised controlled | Young taekwondo athletes and sedentary subjects | – | Magnesium sulfate | 4 weeks |
| Bhudia 2006RCT, placebo | Adults having cardiac surgery | 350 | Magnesium sulfate | – |
| Khine 2006Crossover, placebo | Women with and without premenstrual dysphoric disorder | 31 | Magnesium | – |
| Naderi-Heiden 2005RCT, placebo | Inpatients in opiate detoxification | 41 | Magnesium sulfate | – |
| Grazzi 2005Single-arm or open-label | Children with tension-type headache | 9 | Magnesium pidolate, 4,500 mg | 9 weeks |
| Bhatia 2004RCT, placebo | Adults having open cholecystectomy | 50 | Magnesium sulfate | 0 weeks |
| Hornyak 2004Single-arm or open-label | Alcohol-dependent patients in withdrawal | 14 | Magnesium, 729 mg | 4 weeks |
| Levaux 2003RCT, placebo | Adults having lumbar surgery | 24 | Magnesium sulfate | – |
| Walker 2002Crossover, placebo | Women with premenstrual symptoms | 85 | Not named, 350 mg | 8 weeks |
| Walker 2002RCT, placebo | Adults with mild hypertension | 36 | Not named, 600 mg | 10 weeks |
| Kara 2002RCT, placebo | Women having hysterectomy | 24 | Magnesium sulfate | – |
| Held 2002Crossover, placebo | Healthy elderly adults | 12 | Magnesium, 729 mg | 3 weeks |
| Ezhov 2002Single-arm or open-label | Elderly patients with stable angina | – | Magnerot, magnesium sulphate | – |
| Manuel y Keenoy 2000Single-arm or open-label | Adults with unexplained chronic fatigue | 93 | Not named | – |
| De Souza 2000Crossover, placebo | Women with mild premenstrual symptoms | 44 | Magnesium oxide, 200 mg | 4 weeks |
| Ghia 2000Non-randomised controlled | Women in preterm labour on and off Mg sulfate | 15 | Magnesium sulfate | – |
| Frusso 1999Crossover, placebo | Adults with nocturnal leg cramps | 45 | Magnesium citrate, 1,800 mg | 4 weeks |
| Hantouche 1998RCT, placebo | Chronic benzodiazepine users | 144 | Magnesium aspartate | 12 weeks |
| Starobrat-Hermelin 1998Non-randomised controlled | Children with ADHD and magnesium deficiency | 116 | Not named | 26 weeks |
| Walker 1998Crossover, placebo | Women with premenstrual symptoms | 38 | Magnesium oxide, 200 mg | 8 weeks |
| Zinnante 1998Non-randomised controlled | Women in preterm labour vs controls | 31 | Magnesium sulfate | – |
| Golf 1998RCT, placebo | Competitive triathletes | 23 | Magnesium orotate, 413 mg | 4 weeks |
| Tanabe 1998RCT, active or other control | Healthy young volunteers under sleep deprivation | 16 | Not named, 100 mg | 4 weeks |
| Murck 1998Crossover, placebo | Healthy men | 10 | Magnesium sulfate, 8,000 mg | – |
| Hornyak 1998Single-arm or open-label | Adults with periodic leg movements or restless legs | 10 | Not named, 301 mg | 5 weeks |
| Tanaka 1998Single-arm or open-label | Patients with neuropathic pain | 8 | Magnesium sulfate | – |
| Starobrat-Hermelin 1997Non-randomised controlled | Children with ADHD and magnesium deficiency | 75 | Not named, 200 mg | 26 weeks |
| Lichodziejewska 1997Crossover, placebo | Patients with symptomatic mitral valve prolapse and low magnesium | – | Not named | 5 weeks |
| Tramer 1996RCT, placebo | Women having abdominal hysterectomy | 42 | Magnesium sulfate, 13,000 mg | – |
| Bocková 1992Crossover, placebo | Women with anxious depressive neurosis on anxiolytics | 20 | Magnesium lactate | 1 weeks |
| Durlach 1992RCT, placebo | Patients with chronic fatigue syndrome | – | Not named | – |
| Cox 1991RCT, placebo | Patients with chronic fatigue syndrome | 32 | Magnesium sulfate | 6 weeks |
| Facchinetti 1991RCT, placebo | Women with premenstrual syndrome | 32 | Magnesium pyrrolidone carboxylate, 1,080 mg | 8 weeks |
| Chouinard 1990Single-arm or open-label | Rapid cycling bipolar patients | 9 | Magnesium aspartate hydrochloride, 486 mg | 32 weeks |
| Simões Fernandes 1985Non-randomised controlled | Patients with mitral valve prolapse and latent tetany | 35 | Magnesium lactate | 16 weeks |
| Golf 1984Single-arm or open-label | Healthy men during ergometer exercise | 9 | Magnesium aspartate | 2 weeks |
| Dralle 1980Other | Full-term newborn infants | 14 | Not named | – |
What's known about safety
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In trials
Reviews of trials on sleep and anxiety reported few side effects from magnesium by mouth. More than 400 mg a day from supplements can cause diarrhoea. Drip doses on this page were given in hospital, where blood levels can be watched.
Rawji 2024, review of 15 trials; Mah 2021, review of 3 trials in older adults; NHS vitamins and minerals guidance
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In the UK
Common forms such as citrate, oxide, chloride, sulphate, lactate and bisglycinate are on the UK list of minerals allowed in food supplements. The NHS says 400 mg or less a day from supplements is unlikely to cause harm, and EFSA set an upper limit of 250 mg a day of added magnesium for adults, pregnancy and children from 4, not counting magnesium in food.
Directive 2002/46/EC Annex II as retained in UK law (legislation.gov.uk); NHS vitamins and minerals guidance; EFSA overview of upper intake levels, 2025 (SCF 2001), Oct 2026
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Check first
Magnesium can build up in the blood when the kidneys don't clear it well, and case reports describe dangerous levels in older people with kidney problems taking magnesium laxatives. It can also affect some medicines, such as alendronic acid for bones, so the NHS asks you to tell your doctor about magnesium supplements. Speak to a pharmacist or doctor first if you have kidney problems or take regular medicines, or to your midwife or doctor if you're pregnant.
Yamaguchi 2018, case series of magnesium oxide in older adults; NHS alendronic acid medicines guidance, Oct 2026
Where these studies come from
We list every published study in people that gave magnesium and measured thinking, memory, mood, stress, sleep, energy, tiredness or quality of life. Any form counts, by mouth or by drip, including hospital studies in surgery, intensive care and pregnancy. Magnesium counts as on its own when it was the only difference between the groups, even if added to a medicine or usual care. Magnesium with vitamin B6, other minerals or plant actives counts as a blend. Studies that only measured magnesium levels in blood or diet, the magnesium load test used for diagnosis, and medicines given as a magnesium salt, such as magnesium pemoline, are left out. This first version is built from each study's summary; full-paper checks come next.
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We search
PubMed, the world's main library of medical research, for every paper on L-theanine.
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We keep studies in people
Lab and animal work is counted but left out of the list, because it doesn't tell you what happens in people.
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We note the basics
Who took part, how many, how much and for how long, from each study's published summary. A second check corrects what the first read gets wrong.
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We read them in full
Results appear once we've read the whole paper and checked every number. The date at the top shows when this entry was last updated.
Download the study list
Every study in people as a spreadsheet, 111 rows, free to reuse with a link back.
Versions
Each update to the data gets a new version number, so you can tell what changed and when.
See every version
1.0 · 28 Oct 2026. First release. Every published study giving magnesium to people that measured thinking, memory, mood, stress, sleep, energy or quality of life is listed from its summary. None is read in full yet.
